The £10 Ikea Smart Plug - Review
Building a smart home takes some time. There are so many different options out there to choose from. If you would like to have some ideas check out my weekly blogs on - creating a smart home, they will help you when building your smart home and have some amazing recommendations. Ikea has a smart home line called TRÅDFRI, the collection includes, smart lights, controllers, and plugs, which all can be connected via a bridge (Can be used without a Bridge but still requires TRADFRI remote + no smart capabilities) and used with Google, Alexa, and HomeKit.
TRÅDFRI is one of the cheapest ways to start creating a smart home. Its focus is to get the average consumer to see how easy and simple it is to adapt to the future of smart homes, a little bit like this site! When you are building your smart home, you most likely choose one assistant to control them all, that being Google, Alexa or Apple. TRÅDFRI solves that problem by being compatible with all three, but as you may have or will stumble across, some products on the market are expensive, I'm talking triple digits just to replace something you already have for something with a wifi chip. I am talking about the basic stuff, like a fan, outdoor lights, speakers, and so on. Stuff you might already have and don't want to spend a fortune to replace just for smart capabilities. This is where the £10 IKEA TRÅDFRI plug just works! Keep in mind the bridge is needed for smart control and a remote (which can be bundled with the plug for £19) which is used to connect the plug to the bridge.
SETUP
Once you have got your smart plug and you've downloaded the Ikea app and set up the bridge you're ready to go. To connect you're remote follow this video https://youtu.be/_cecBk4_kfQ The app will also guide you.
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Once in the app, you want to go to manage devices and press the plus +
this will bring up a list of products from Ikea you can add. Press the one that says "control outlet" From there it will ask what remote you are using to connect the plug with. You then hold the pairing button while keeping the remote within 2 cm of the plug. The app should display that a device has been found and will connect it. Once you have paired the plug it should show up in your smart assistant's apps. You will also be able to control the plug with the remote your used to pair it with.
Now your plug is added to your home. you can go into Google, Alexa, or HomeKit and assign it a room and what it's being used for, for example, HomeKit lets you display the plug as a Light, Plug, or fan. This will help when creating automation. and there you go.
I have 12 Ikea plugs in my home and have used them to make flicking a switch non-existent.
Again the plug is to give your basics that you already own smart controls. 3 of my plugs are used for fans in my apartment. All fans are set to the highest setting due to our place always being stuffy. With automation, a Philips Hue sensor, and Nest Thermostat When the temperature rises above 28ºc all the fans kick in and when the temperature goes below 17ºc the fans will cut out and the heating will turn on. So instead of Spending hundreds of $$$ on a smart fan with a few extra features I spent £30 and got 3 powerful fans to run autonomously in the background.
If you have a home cinema or projector and sound system like me and want to be able to turn your system on or off you can. Keep in mind you cant display the plug as tv or speaker just yet, but you can add the plug into scenes and automation to be able to turn on/off your setup.
While the technology is new and prices are sky high the Ikea smart plug is one of the best ways to cheaply get anything in your home smart. You could argue adding the bridge and remote bumps up the price, but you still are only spending £44 which is the same price as ONE Philips Hue Colour bulb! That's just to start, Ikea's cheapest smart bulb will run you £6 and a colour bulb costing only £22. TRÅDFRI is the best way to smart and for way less than other companies. Look at all the products Ikea smart products here!
Let me know what you think and if this has helped you in any way let me know in the comments. Be sure to like and subscribe for weekly updates.